Should I/ my child wear a mouthguard during sporting events?

Reduce the Risk of Injury

While collision and high-contact sports such as boxing and football are a higher risk for tooth and mouth injury, these type of injuries can and do happen frequently in other sports as well. Mouthguards basically act as a cushion and can help decrease an impact from a blow to the face. They are great at reducing the risk of broken or missing teeth and also injuries to the soft tissue inside the mouth and to the jaw. Many of these problems can be very expensive to fix and will sometimes lead to a lifetime of dental issues.

Our Recommendation

We recommend wearing custom-made mouthguards that are made to fight snugly to your individual teeth. They are more comfortable to wear and are usually easier to breathe with them in place. Our dental office also offers mouthguard customization where you can choose certain colors, logos, or numbers to place on them. Children who like the way their mouthguard looks and feels are more likely to wear it.

However, customized mouthguards are more expensive because they are made for the individual. If this is cost-prohibitive, consider boil and bite mouth guards as an alternative. They will fit better than other stock, performed guards and still offer good protection.